Cracked Ice
by AnimeFanFicXD
Summary: 10 years later, Pitch is back, and he wants revenge. With new nightmare sand and a new plan in mind, will his plot to get revenge work or will he be sent back into hiding? [onesided BlackIce, might have BunnyXJack later though] [Warning: Will later contain mature yaoi scenes as well as torture so if this offends or disturbs you, please refrain from reading]
1. Chapter 1

**As most of you know, this is the story I've decided to work on next since I've finished 'The Ghost Brothers', which I will be writing a sequel to probably after this. I already know what I'm going to do for this story, so all I have to do is write it! Wish me luck, it's my first ROTG fic!**

"Sh, Baby Tooth, you'll give me away!" Baby Tooth rolled her eyes at Jack. It was 3 days before Christmas and North was a bit behind so the guardians decided to help him out. Of course, Jack Frost was the spirit of fun, so he had to mess things up just a little.

"Oh Baby Tooth, don't be like that. Here, just watch, it'll be fun. I promise." Baby Tooth shook her head in defeat. She knew things were going to end badly. Jack conjured up a snowball and took a moment to aim. With a smile on his face, Jack threw the snowball, hitting his target square in the face.

Phil fell backwards when the snowball hit him in the face, knocking him into the stack of baby dolls behind him. All 327 of them fell on him. Jack floated backwards, laughing. That little prank had gone better than he thought. He continued like that until he hit something, causing him to fall on his butt. Baby Tooth squeaked and flew into the pocket of Jack's hoodie. Jack looked up to see, a very upset, North. North picked him up by his hoodie and brought him to eye level.

"What are you doing, Jack?" Jack shrugged his shoulders playfully.

"Having a little fun. C'mon North, what's wrong with that?" North gave Jack a hard stare.

"'What's wrong with that?'" North mumbled, "Jack, its Christmas in 3 days!" Jack floated in the air around North.

"Exactly! It's Christmas! Everyone around here's so stressed. You guys need to cheer up! Have a little fun!" Jack made one of his special snowballs and threw it at North. A familiar blue mist circled North's eyes and he smiled. He patted Jack on the back, causing him to fall again.

"Ah, you are right, Jack. It's Christmas! Besides, with all of us I'm positive that we'll get everything finished in no time!" North threw his hands in the air, "Let's celebrate!" Jack laughed.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Jack followed North into the main room. Jack looked around, easily picking his new family from the crowd of yeti and elves. Tooth was painting Jewelry boxes, Bunny was arguing with a yeti that Easter was better than Christmas, and Sandy had fallen asleep building a toy race car. North stood next to the globe, the lights as bright as ever. His voice boomed throughout the workshop, everyone's heads turning to him.

"Everyone! Take a break my friends, it's Christmas! ...Except you yeti, you still have to work." All of the yeti groaned. Tooth flew up to North.

"You can't do that North, that's not fair!" North rolled his eyes.

"Ugh, fine. Yeti, you have break too." The yeti cheered, waking up Sandy in the progress. They played music, ate cookies, danced, talked, and even had a snowball fight, which Sandy ended up winning. Jack sat on an armchair that was in the corner of the workshop. He smiled to himself as he sipped his cup of hot cocoa that one of the yeti made for him. Jack sat back and watched as his family interacted with one another. A warm feeling enveloped him.

_'This is so nice, if only it could last forever.'_ North clapped his hands.

"Alright everyone, this has been fun but breaks over. We need to-" North was cut off by a loud siren type noise. Everyone looked around.

"Aye mates," Bunny pointed at the globe, "look, it's for the Tooth Palace." Tooth gasped and started flying all around the workshop, panicking.

"Oh no. Not my babies again! What do we do? What is they're already gone?! What if-" Tooth was cut off by Bunny.

"Tooth!" He grabbed her shoulders and shook her gently, "it's gonna be okay mate, promise." Tooth nodded. North walked up and patted Tooth on the back.

"Bunny is right. Come, we take sleigh." Everyone followed North into the ice room where the sleigh was kept. This time Bunny didn't argue about taking his tunnels instead of the sleigh. From what happened last time something was wrong at the Tooth Palace, everyone wanted to hurry. Whether or not it was Pitch, they didn't know.

Bunny, Jack, Sandy, and Tooth piled into the sleigh behind North. He whipped the reigns, causing the sleigh to exit the mountain. As they flew into the air, North pulled out one of his snow globe portals. He whispered Tooth Palace into the glass and threw it, effectively opening a portal.

They flew through it; colors of blue, green, and pink washed over them. Jack watched as the colors disappeared and the tooth palace appeared. Jack looked around, it was quiet, too quiet. North landed the sleigh on one of the many platforms. Everyone pulled out their weapons and slowly got out of the sleigh, keeping their guard up the whole time. Jack walked a few steps farther than everyone, his staff pointing at an invisible enemy.

A dark chuckle filled the air; it was sinister and sent shivers down the guardians' spines. Before the guardians could find the source, a string of black sand wrapped around North, Bunny, Sand, and Tooth. They tried to escape, but quickly realized they couldn't move. Jack looked around and saw Pitch step out of the shadows.

"Pitch, what are you doing here? We've defeated you twice already, and we'll do it again." Pitch laughed again as he began to pace back and forth in front of the 4 restrained guardians. Taking a moment to answer North's question.

"I'm not here to place fear into the children's hearts, no, that'll have to wait. You know, 10 years trapped in a hole in the ground gives someone a long time to think. I _could _come back and make you disappear by destroying the children's belief in you, but that would be too easy. I wanted you to suffer the way you made me!" Pitch stopped to take a deep breath, keeping his emotions in check.

"So I thought to myself, 'what would crush the guardians and make them suffer?' Then it came to me." Pitch turned and shot nightmare sand at Jack, knocking him to the floor and making him tumble as it wrapped around both of his wrists and ankles. Pitch turned back to the other guardians and smiled.

"Do you like my new sand? 10 years also gives you time to hone your skills. Not only does my sand turn dreams into nightmares, now it can paralyze anyone from the neck down, except for vital organs of course." Pitch walked over to Jack and looked at him. Jack just glared back.

"Oh Jack, not a neutral party anymore, are you?" Before Jack could retort, Pitch planted one of his feet on Jack's chest, effectively knocking the breath out of him. The other guardians cried out, threatening Pitch to leave Jack alone. Pitch just pushed down harder.

"If you had joined me, we could've won. We would've had the power. But no, you _had_ to take the guardians' side. If it wasn't for you, the _whole_ world would be cowering at my feet." Jack mentally groaned in pain when he heard a crack coming from his ribs. His chest began to burn from lack of oxygen and his –probably—broken ribs. Pitch lifted his foot off of Jack, and Jack took in a deep breath. Pitch didn't give Jack a moment to rest and grabbed a fistful of Jack's snow white hair. Jack hissed as his head was yanked upwards so that he could look at Pitch, face to face.

"North asked me why I was here, and I told him that I wanted all of you to suffer. I thought long and hard on what I could do, and then it hit me. The only way to make them truly suffer would be if something happened to you and all they could do was watch as it happened. Hopelessly watching as their youngest member suffered so, much, _agony_." Pitch slammed Jack's head into the stone floor of the platform. Jack heard yelling in the distance-probably the other guardians- as his head spun, stars dancing in his vision. Jack could feel something warm trickling down the back of his neck.

Pitch raised his head up again, just to slam it back down. Pitch repeated the action over and over, enough to crack the stone beneath them. Jack's vision blurred in and out, his breathing had long since become ragged, and his body felt as if on fire. Pitch finally stopped, stepping back to take in what he had done.

"Oh Jack, this look really suits you, except…" Pitch placed his index finger and thumb underneath his chin, as if in thought. He snapped his finger, "that's it!"

Pitch crawled on top of Jack, his hips resting at the boy's knees. The guardians watched with baited breath. They had long since stopped screaming at Pitch, knowing that it wouldn't change anything. Pitch pulled something out of his robe and everyone gasped, they would've been frozen if they weren't already. Pitch traced the object along the side of Jack's face, his eyes widening.

"Do you remember this, Jack? It's been quite useful in the past. I'm sure it would come in handy now, although, I'm sure it would be even better if I changed it a bit." Jack starred at the arrow in Pitch's hands. Of course he remembered it, he spent most of his days trying to forget it. To forget the way the arrow plunged into Sandy's back, turning him into nightmare sand. He was okay now, but Jack still couldn't forgive himself for what happened, if he had just gotten there faster.

It was then that Jack whimpered. He made himself a vow that he wouldn't let a sound pass his lips, he wasn't going to give Pitch the satisfaction. But he did. For once, Jack truly was scared. Pitch had morphed the arrow into a dagger using his nightmare sand, a dagger that Jack knew was just for him. Pitch grinned like a madman.

"Yes, Jack! That's perfect, let the fear roll off of you in waves. After all, it only makes me stronger." Pitch laughed, and all Jack could do was lay there and wait for the inevitable. Pitch finally composed himself and looked at Jack, smiling.

"Let's get started, shall we?"

* * *

Jack struggled to find anything, _anything_ to distract him from the pain. It was excruciating, and it was consuming him bit by bit. There were slashes all over his body; there were even one or two on his face. He held everything in, except for the whimper when Pitch pulled out the arrow. Jack knew Pitch was getting angry, and frankly, he didn't care anymore.

"Why won't you scream, Jack? Are you trying to stay strong for your guardians?" Pitch sighed, "I hoped I wouldn't have to do this so soon, but I want to hear you scream before I take my leave." Pitch climbed onto Jack again. Jack spat blood on Pitch's face.

"I'd like… to see… you try." Pitch smirked.

"Oh Jack, I'd be glad to." Before Jack could respond, Pitch drove the dagger into his side. Jack screamed. The other guardians called out to him.

"JACK!" They didn't see what Pitch did because his body was in the way, but the way Jack screamed, they knew something was very wrong.

It hurt. Everything hurt. It was painful for Jack to even breathe. Everything was on fire. Jack's body barely registered Pitch pulling the blade back out except for the tug on his body that came with it. He could feel darkness creeping up in the corners of his eyes. He was surprised he lasted this long, although, being immortal did have something to do with it. Pitch smiled and leaned down next to Jack's ear as he whispered; only wanting Jack to hear.

"That was very nice, Jack, music to my ears." Pitch waved his hand and nightmare sand formed a collar around Jack's neck.

"Do you like it? It's also some new sand I've created. It won't paralyze you, but it'll let me know where you are when I want to pay you another visit. Till next time." Pitch slipped back into the shadows after snapping his fingers, causing all of the nightmare sand to disappear except for the collar around Jack's neck.

**How did you like it? If I get at least 4 reviews, then I'll keep writing because if not, then I'll work on another story that I want to instead. I've got so many ideas my heads hurt! Anyways, if you want more review and tell me what you thought. I love all of you!**


	2. Chapter 2

There will be some BunnyXJack in this chapter, but you have to squint to see it.

**_Fave101_:…yeah…**

**_Emeraldwolf22057_: I am! :)**

**_Wouldbewriter23:_ Thank you for being the first person to review this on all the websites I put it on! It means a lot that you're interested.**

**_Guest #1 and #2 and frostflower1111_: Thank all of you! I'm glad you like it so much!**

**_Higuchimon:_ Thanks for the tip! I went back and changed it! And don't worry; something horrible will happen to Jack in chapter 7. Just want you to get excited ;)**

**_Oblicionkeeper23_: Actually, the lemon (if I write one, I'm starting to change my mind) will come later in the fan fiction. I still put the warning up there so that people know where the story is going before they choose to read it.**

The nightmare sand disappeared except for the collar around Jack's neck. North, Sandy, and Tooth chased after Pitch, trying to catch him before he left while Bunny went to check on Jack. Bunny hopped over to the limp boy on the ground who was barely hanging on to consciousness. Bunny picked Jack up and cradled him, trying to relieve any pressure or pain that he could. Jack began to have a coughing a fit, coughing up blood as well. Bunny patted Jack's back.

"Hang in there Frostbite, we'll fix you right up in a minute, promise." Bunny frowned as he looked at Jack's wounds. There wasn't an inch of Jack that wasn't bruised or cut. Bunny looked at his—now ruined—clothes and saw a growing stain of blood. He gently raised Jack's hoodie, trying to be gentle but still caused Jack to hiss in pain. Bunny's eyes widened as he saw the stab wound on Jack's side. He jumped up and ran over to the sleigh, although trying not to jostle Jack.

"There's no time to look for Pitch, mates! If we don't get him back to the pole soon, he's not gonna make it!" The other guardians starred at Bunny and Jack, who were now in the sleigh and joined them quietly. They were all worried about Jack, so no words were spoken, everyone understood. Bunny looked down at the boy in his arms. Jack's eyes were glazed over as he looked up at Bunny. He just wanted to go to sleep, hoping that when he went to sleep, he'd wake up and it would all be a dream. Jack's eyes started to close. Bunny shook him gently.

"Oi, Frostbite, you gotta stay awake mate. You took a lot of blows to your head, and you can't fall asleep. We'll be there in a minute, we're on our way now." Jack nodded, trying his best to fight the exhaustion. He grabbed a fistful of Bunny's fur in his hand as he closed his eyes, waiting for everything to stop. Bunny couldn't help the anger that coursed through his veins; mainly directed towards Pitch, but also himself. He could've fought harder against Pitch's sand, he could've ran faster, he could've done _something._

North looked back at Jack while flying the sleigh. Bunny was right. He didn't look like he was going to make it if they took too much longer. North took a snow globe out of his coat. He whispered North Pole into the globe and threw it in front of the sleigh. The magic portal opened and the sleigh passed through it, appearing at their destination. The sleigh jolted as North ran into the walls of ice and as he parked it. Jack winced every time. He was fighting a losing battle, and knew it.

"Bunny…" Bunny looked down, shocked that Jack was talking.

"Hush Frostbite, don't talk-"

"No, bunny, I don't thin- I don't think I can last much longer… it hurts so much, I- I just wanna go to sleep…" Bunny stayed silent, not knowing how to respond. Bunny knew Jack wouldn't be able to hold out forever, but hearing Jack say it himself made Bunny feel like there was a void in his chest. To see such a fun loving spirit so broken almost brought him to tears.

"I understand Jack, but please, just a little longer and you can. Just a little longer." Jack's eyes widened when Bunny said his actual name instead of Frostbite. Jack smiled slightly and nodded.

"Thanks Kangaroo." Bunny smiled. The guardians hopped out of the sleigh, going as fast as they could to help Jack. North ordered some yeti to go and get their infirmary ready. The workshop had an infirmary because it was the safe house for the guardians and the yeti got injured on the job, especially Phil; no thanks to Jack. The yet did as they were told, grabbing supplies and getting a room ready.

The guardians rushed into the room the yeti had prepared, immediately getting to work. Everyone scrambled around; trying to find something to do that would help Jack in some way. Finally, North had had enough of the chaos.

"That's enough! Now, everyone out except for you Phil, I need your help." Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at north. Bunny stomped over to him and shook his finger at North.

"Oh no mate, we're staying. We wanna help Jack." North shook his head.

"No, you three will only get in the way. Only Bunny knows some medical treatment, so perhaps you can stay if you listen to everything I tell you. Tooth, I'm sorry, but you'll be too upset and worried to focus and Sandy, no offense, but the slight trouble with communication will only make things more difficult. So Sandy, will you take Tooth and go?" Sandy nodded, grabbing Tooth's hand and pulling her out of the room with him. North sighed and turned to Jack, who was just watching everything happen.

"Jack, we need to take off your shirt so that we can get to your wounds." Jack didn't respond, but North didn't expect him to. Bunny helped hold Jack up while North took off his shirt. North and Bunny closed their eyes. Jack's torso was littered with cuts and bruises, some worse than others. There was a large oval shaped blue and purple bruise over Jack's chest, most likely from Pitch's foot.

"So that's why he screamed." North looked at the stab wound on Jack's side. There was a thin layer of frost over it, stopping a little of the bleeding, but not all of it.

"Blimey, didn't know Frostbite could do that." North shrugged as Bunny and he put on a pair of gloves. The last thing Jack needed was an infection. North asked Phil to get him a washcloth so he could wipe away the blood on Jack's body.

"Bunny, you clean Jack while I get the stuff ready, we'll have to get rid of some damaged tissue. Only worry about the stab wound right now, the rest can wait. Bunny nodded as Phil handed him the bowl of water that North requested. He took the cloth out of the warm water and twisted it, draining out most of the water.

"Sorry Frostbite, this might hurt a bit." Jack nodded, silently telling Bunny it was okay and to go on. Bunny gently placed the cloth on Jack's skin, starting at his navel. He worked his way to Jack's right, getting closer and closer to the wound. He accidently pressed on one of Jack's bruises, causing him to hiss in pain.

"Oh, sorry mate." Bunny finished cleaning Jack, getting as much of the blood and stone pieces from the platform as he could. North walked over, holding surgery instruments in his hands.

"I'm sorry Jack. You realize that we can't put you to sleep while we do this, but we can numb you for an hour or so." Jack watched as Bunny placed some sort of gel over the wound. He was right, it did numb it. North put on a Doctor's mask and went to work.

Now, what North didn't mention, was that it would only numb it mostly, so Jack found himself in quite a bit of pain. Granted, it was 10 times less than it would have been without the gel, but it still hurt. North finished within 45 minutes, thankful for finishing before the numbness wore off. Bunny just sat next to Jack the whole time and tried to sooth him, knowing that his medicine wouldn't completely block the pain. While North cleaned off his gloves, Bunny bandaged Jack's side, carefully wrapping the cloth around Jack's torso. North came back with a needle and special thread.

"Now, I have work on your head, but after that you can sleep." Bunny placed gel on the large slash on the back of Jack's head, close to his neck. North sat behind Jack and stitched the gash, having to cut some of Jack's hair in the process. North finished quickly, laying Jack's head back down on the bed gently. Bunny and North waited for Jack to fall asleep before taking care of the rest of his wounds. They didn't rush through them this time. They gently took care of each cut and bruise, bandaging them once they were done. Silence fell between them, neither knowing what to say.

"I never believe Pitch could go so far." Bunny looked up at North, having just finished the last cut. He started working on Jack's ribs, which 2 were broken.

"What do you mean, mate?" North jus sighed and stood up, placing the leftover bandages and medicine on a cart.

"All of this; the children, the nightmares, Jack, everything!" North slammed his handed on the cart, jostling Jack slightly.

"Careful!"

"Oh, sorry Bunny. It's just that… if Jack's ice hadn't done what it did, we probably would've lost him.  
North walked over and sat in a chair next to Jack's bed, being joined by Bunny after he finished.

"It was probably just a defensive mechanism too; Jack most likely didn't even know he had done it." Bunny looked at North.

"I know ya feel mate, but right now we have to focus on Jack." North looked down at Jack. Even though he had been through so much, Jack was still only a child compared to the rest of them. It seemed that Jack's pain didn't reach him in sleep, he looked so peaceful. North nodded.

"Yes, you are right Bunny. Come, we tell others about Jack." The two left the room, neither of them noticing the collar around Jack's neck or the fact that nightmare sand was seeping off of it, and causing Jack nightmares.

* * *

The doors of the lounge opened. Sandy and Tooth looked up as Bunny and North walked in. The two sat down on the unused armchairs next to the fireplace. Sandy and Tooth looked at each other, none of them knowing what to say. Tooth decided to break the silence. She flew to North.

"How is he?" North sighed.

"He is in bad shape, but he will be okay. It's just…" Bunny hopped over to the two, Sandy floating over as well. Bunny looked at North.

"Just what, mate?" North placed his hands on his stomach.

"I have bad feeling… in my belly.." The other 3 looked at once jolly man. Everyone felt uncomfortable in the tension filled room. A picture of a child appeared above Sandy's head, as well as Pitch's face. Tooth smiled, trying to raise everyone's spirit.

"At least Pitch said he wasn't going after the children! That's good, right?" The three nodded, smiling slightly. Sandy even gave her a thumbs up. They decided that they weren't going to let Pitch bring them down; it was Christmas in three days!

Everyone went back to the workshop, keeping themselves busy. North asked Bunny to check on Jack every few hours, making sure to change his bandages and such. North had just finished a toy helicopter when Bunny busted through the doors, causing everyone to look at him.

"We've got a problem mate."

* * *

Pitch's face was blank as he sat on his throne. Nightmare sand twirled through his fingers as he thought about his day. Phase one of his plane was complete, although he didn't expect to stab him so soon. Now, Jack had a small amount of nightmare sand coursing through his body. He would startle easily, but since the dagger was only inside him for such a short time, that was all.

The collar however, was a different matter. He knew where all of his sand was, so he would always be able to find Jack. That was a benefit, but it wasn't why he put it on Jack. That part, he kept to himself. Whenever Jack slept, the nightmare sand from the collar would cause him nightmares. Of course, Pitch planned ahead.

He knew that if anyone saw them, that Sandy would be alerted immediately. Pitch designed it so that if dream sand intervened, his nightmare sand would give it control for an hour or so to get the Sandman off guard, then take control once more when they're weren't paying attention to it anymore. Pitch also knew that visiting the frost sprite once and giving him nightmares wouldn't be enough to break the boy. He would have to pay Jack a visit, but he couldn't do it too soon, otherwise all of his plans would be for naught.

It felt though, to Pitch, that something was wrong… in his chest. He thought that when he got his revenge, it would fill the empty feeling he had, the loneliness he had. Now, it just felt like the emptiness had grown. Perhaps he hadn't hurt Jack enough, perhaps Jack gave up too easily… perhaps the problem wasn't Jack, but himself. Pitch growled and stood up, storming out of his lair. He looked around at the melting snow on the ground. Pitch had to find a new lair thanks to Jack.

It was Jack's fault that he had to relocate, it was Jack's fault that he had to rebuild his army, it was Jack's fault that he had to hid in the shadows for the past 10 years, it was Jack's fault that he still felt so empty inside. Pitch took a deep breath and went back underground, an angered look still on his face. Perhaps, he should pay Jack another visit.


	3. Chapter 3

_I apologize, I was going to update last night, but the site wouldn't let me. I'm loving all the reviews I'm getting!_

**_Sasstcat1998:_**** Don't worry, Summer. It's finally here.**

**_Fave101:_**** Yay!**

**_Anonymous The Nobody:_**** Fun fact, rise of the guardians was based of off the book series called 'The Guardians of Childhood'. In the books, Santa's name is Nicholas St. North which is where North comes from, and the tooth fairy's name is Toothania, so they called her Tooth for short. Hoped that helped!**

**_Higuchimon:_**** Lol, thanks. And it's pretyt terrible, I can't believe I'm actually going to do it to him!**

**_Anonymous chick:_********That was one of the most beautiful reviews I have ever seen! Thanks so much!**

**_frostflower123:_**** Lol, I have that problem all the time! (Glad I'm not the only one!)**

The four guardians sat around the fifth, watching Sandy do what he could. Nightmare sand had been swirling over Jack's head for the past 27 minutes, despite Sandy's desperate attempts to rid him of it. Bunny had busted into the workshop, showing them that Jack was having a rather violent nightmare. He was thrashing around in his bed and groaning in discomfort.

Sandy had been able to stop them for an hour and a half, but the second he turned away the dreams turned back into nightmares. He hasn't been able to change them back since. Sandy lowered his hands and sighed, although no noise came out. Tooth looked at Sandy.

"What's wrong?" Dream sand formed an X over the Sandman's head as he pointed at Jack. Everyone paled.

"You mean you can't get rid of them?" Sandy shook his head. Series of pictures formed over his head that only North could understand.

"Sandy said the only thing we can do it wait until Jack wakes up. He said we should get back to work and do what we can while we can do it." The other two nodded, their good mood having vanished again. They went back to work, though mildly distracted.

_"Jack... I'm scared." Jack looked at his little sister standing over cracked ice. He shifted his weight, wincing when it caused the ice beneath him to crack as well. Jack held out his hands._

_"You're going to be fine, I promise. Would I lie to you?" The little girl trembled, on the verge of tears._

_"Yes Jack! You always play tricks!" Jack shook his head and picked up a stick off of the ice._

_"Well not this time. Here, let's play a game."_

_"This is no time for games Jack!"_

_"No, we're going to have a little fun. We're going to play hopscotch, like we do everyday. It's as easy as one," Jack took a step towards the thicker ice, wincing as it cracked, "two," Jack took another step, and then another, "three." She smiled and hesitantly took a small step forward._

_"That's it! One, two, th-" As Jack's little sister went to take her third step, she slipped and fell into the ice. Jack screamed and jumped in the ice after her._

Jack shot up from his sleep, his breath coming out in short and ragged pants. He looked around, but didn't see anything, anything at all. It was pitch black, and Jack couldn't even see his own fingers in front of his face. He slowly sat up, causing whatever was on him to fall down. Jack's body ached and he groaned in protest when he tried to get up.

_'No, I have to do this. I have to get out of here... where ever 'here' is...'_ Jack felt around, finding an edge to whatever it was that he was laying on. It came to Jack that he was most likely laying on some sort of bed and whatever was on him was probably a blanket. Why he was in one, he had no idea.

The last thing Jack remembered was giving another snow day in Burgess when North sent a letter asking him for help with Christmas. Jack gripped his head when a pain splitting headache found it's way into his mind. He fell back into the bed, thrashing and rolling around. The pain finally passed, leaving Jack more tired and sore than he already was.

He slowly and carefully moved his legs over the side, relishing the coldness that eminated from the floor onto his feet. Jack gripped the edge of the bed, and braced himself, taking a deep breath before slowly putting weight on his feet. He leaned forward, starting to stand on shaky legs. As he took his first step, pain shot up his leg, causing his body to burn slighty, adding on to the ache he already had. When Jack took his second step he collapsed, his legs not being able to hold all of his weight.

Jack's body collided with the floor, causing his ribs to emmit a small crack in protest. His side began to burn as well, probably from the sudden jolt his body received. After several failed attempts at walking by himself, Jack decide to lean again the wall instead of leaning on his staff like he normally would.

Jack frantically looked around, reaching out blindly into the darkness. He had to find his staff, it was his whole being. There was never a time when Jack didn't have his staff, even when he slept. He remembered when he first touched it, how frost covered both the old wood staff and everything else they touched. Jack was going to find it.

He calmed down and took a deep breath, and started to search along the wall, leaning on it for support. Jack stretched his hands out in front of him, letting him know if there was something in front of him so he wouldn't run into it. It was a slow process for Jack to walk along the wall since he would trip and stumble every other step he took. His hands ran into something hard and cold, obviously metallic, but before he could stop himself, his body collided with the object. Instead of supporting his weight, it rolled away from him. His body crashed to the floor and the object to crashed into-what he could only guess to be-the wall.

A loud bang filled the room, worsening Jack's headache. Jack gave up after several failed attempts to stand up, his whole body sore and on fire. Jack heard the sound of feet against a wooden floor. They were coming closer and closer until he heard a door open. Jack looked up from the floor and instantly regretted it when light flooded his senses, causing his head to go haywire.

"Frostbite! What are you doing mate?" Once Jack's head stopped spinning he looked up to see a very surprised Bunny.

"Bunny...what are you doing here?" Bunny's face contorted in confusion.

"What do you mean, 'what am I doing here?'... oh blimey, you don't remember, do you frostbite?" Jack starred at Bunny from where he was laying on the floor.

"Remember what? The last thing I remember was when I got a letter from North an-" Jack gripped his head again when another pain consumed his head. Bunny was by his side in an instant. He scooped Jack up and sat him back on the bed.

"What were you doing?" Jack waited until the pain in his head turned into a dull ache before answering Bunny's question.

"I woke up and I couldn't see anything, so I tried to... leave, but I couldn't do anything and then I couldn't find my staff and I-"

"Frostbite, I'd think it would be best if we explained everything to you together, but not in here, it's too depressing." Jack looked around, not really paying attention to the room before, even though he could see. It was rather dull, but he could tell he was at the workshop based off of the colors. Jack found the object that he ran into, a metal cart that was now tipped over with its contents laying sprawled out on the floor.

"Before we go though, I gotta change your bandages. You managed to bang yourself up pretty bad." Jack looked down, just now noticing he was shirtless. His torso was covered in bloody bandages, although they still remained mostly crisp and white. He tugged at one of them, causing it too come loose and unwind. Why was he in bandages?

"Bandages?" Bunny placed his hand on Jack's shoulder. Jack looked up and met his gaze.

"Look, mate, I know you're confused, but just let me fix you back up and then we can explain everything to you. Okay?" Jack just nodded. What else could he do? He had no idea what was going on, what had happened, or why he was at the North Pole. The only thing that he did know, was that Bunny was taking care of him. Jack sat up straighter and let Bunny do his job. As Bunny unwrapped the bandages, Jack looked down and saw his marked body. To say he was confused and a little scared would be a huge understatement.

There were cuts all over his body that looked like they'd hurt when he got him. Apparently, there was also a wound that Jack couldn't see on his side. He tried to look at it, but bending sideways caused his ribs to burn and he got a good chastising from Bunny in the process. It took a while, but Bunny finally finished. He picked the cart that Jack knocked over back up, and put his extra supplies back on it. Jack tried to stand up so that he could walk with Bunny to get his explanation and staff back, but apparently Bunny had different ideas.

"Jack, what are you doing?"

"What does it look like, Bunny? I'm trying to stand up." Bunny pushed him back on the bed.

"Exactly, _trying_. You're not exactly in that sort of shape mate. Here," Bunny pulled out, what looked like a cane, and handed it to Jack, "I know it's not your staff, but you can use this until we can get it back from North. I don't have any idea where he put it." Jack frowned at the cane. He had never really relied on  
Anything but his staff, except for the one time Pitch broke it, but even then he fixed it and flew out of the trench. Jack took the cane from Bunny and rolled it in his hands. It definitely felt foreign in his hands; it wasn't rough and sturdy like his staff, it was polished and week. However, Jack wanted to know about what happened.

He tried to get up again, using the cane by putting most of his weight on it. He slowly took a few steps, moving the cane in time with his feet. Jack was glad that he wasn't falling on his face, but it still felt so unnatural to him. Bunny walked beside as they walked down the hallway, Bunny was there every time he stumbled or tripped.

Jack had no idea why the Kangaroo was being so kind to him, but he liked it whatever it was. It was nice for a change. They walked down the hallway, having to stop along the way so that Jack could rest for a few moments. The two stopped in front of a large set of double doors. Bunny opened one of them and held it open so that Jack could walk into the room.

Jack saw North, Sandy, and Tooth sitting around in armchairs that were next to a fireplace. Their faces were desolate, just starring at empty spaces. Jack stepped into the room, stepping to the side so Bunny could walk in too. He looked around, seeing the Pole so depressing didn't sit well with him.

"Hey guys..." Everyone's head shot up at the sound of Jack's voice. It had been a while since they last heard it.

"Jack, you're awake! How do you feel?" Jack sat down in an armchair that was close to the others, but far away from the fire. He shrugged in response to Tooth's question.

"Not too bad. A little sore and achy, but I'm fine other than that." North smiled and stood up. He walked over to Jack and patted him on the shoulder gently.

"That is wonderful, Jack! Come, I make cooki-" Bunny hoped over.

"Mate, Frostbite doesn't remember what happened. It's because of the concussion that he had." North looked at Bunny.

"Oh, well then, I guess we should explain." The guardians took turns explaining everything to Jack, well, except for Tooth, she couldn't do it. Jack remained calm throughout the whole explanation.

"So, Pitch was the one," Jack pointed to himself, "who did this?" Everyone nodded.

"And I've been asleep for the past week?" North shrugged.

"On and off yes. You woke up a few times, but only for a minute or two each time before you passed out again." Jack nodded.

"Uh huh, and I had nightmares the whole entire time?" Bunny nodded this time.

"Yeah, Sandy managed to get rid of them every time you woke up, but they'd just come right back." Jack nodded. It was a bit to take in, perhaps he would remember it eventually. After all, something that painful would be hard to remember.

"So what now?" The guardians looked at each other in response to Jack's question. North scratched the back of his neck.

"Well uh, you see, what happened, I mean, if you really want-"

"What North means to say," Jack turned to Tooth, who interuppted North, "is that we've been thinking about what's best for you right now. Pitch said that he was just after you, not the children, so with that in mind, we think that it'd be best if you went and stayed with Jamie for a while."

"Jamie? Why him? It's been a few years since I've last saw him, are you sure that he still even believes? He's like 20 now isn't he?" Tooth nodded.

"19, but yes, his light still burns as bright as ever on the globe. If Pitch is going to come after again, then we need to put you somewhere that he won't look. It's been 10 years since any of us have talked to Jamie, except for you, so he would never think to look there. Plus, now that he's living on his own, there's no way Pitch could tell him apart from all the other lights." Jack shrugged.

"I guess, but it still seems a little weird for me." North patted him on the back.

"Weird? Jack, we are guardians! Weird is what we do!" Jack laughed sheepishly. Perhaps a break from the four was just what he needed.

**Keep on reviewing!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry for a month long wait! my fault, I take full responsibility. But, it is a bit longer than usual.**

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Jack, what are you doing?" Jack looked like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He slowly looked up at Jamie, trying to make as innocent of a face as he could, but failing miserably. Realizing that that wouldn't work, he decided to scratch the back of his head and smile sheepishly.

"Hey Jamie, long time no see..." Jamie shook his head as if trying to clear his thoughts.

"Never mind, I don't want to know. What are you doing here?" Jack sighed and let his smile fall from his face. He knew Jamie was going to ask this question sooner or later, he had hoped later though. Jack pushed the box he had been going through aside, his playfulness having left him. He looked around the room.

_'Wow, I can't believe how different things are now...' _Although, Jack couldn't really blame him. 10 years was an awfully long time, not to him of course. To the opposite of Jack, Jamie had grown throughout those ten years; growing and moving on with his life. Of course, he had never lost his belief. His friends did, one by one, slipping away and forgetting about what mattered the most. That was apart of growing up, Jamie supposed.

Speaking of growing up, Jamie hadn't grown up all that bad, if he did say so himself. He finally hit a growth spurt during middle school, him now towering over just 6 foot. His hair had grown longer and his skin a bit more toned. He obviously took care of his body, which was very apparent since he currently had no shirt on, just jeans. His chest was slightly defined, hints of beginning muscles here and there. Jamie's skin and hair were wet, most likely coming from the shower that Jack had heard running while entering Jamie's house.

"Jack?" Jack shook his head, trying to clear his mind and deciding on how to tell Jamie. It was strange, having to tell Jamie something that he didn't even remember happening. Although, his body was still incredibly sore from the whole ordeal, proof that it_ had_ actually happened. He chuckled to himself, albeit darkly.

"To be honest, I dont' quite know myself."

"But then what-" Jack held up his hand up, cutting Jamie off.

"Let me explain." Jamie sat down on his knees in front of Jack and nodded. Jack explained to Jamie what North and Bunny explained to him. He explained about helping North with Christmas when trouble started at the Tooth Palace, how Pitch had bound them all and attacked Jack, how he wanted to make the guardians suffer the way they had him. Jack finished his story and the two sat in silence.

It hurt Jack to see Jamie with that look on his face. How pathetic he must look to him. How can Jack protect the children of the world when he couldn't even protect himself? Jack felt something inside him break. Of course he couldn't protect the children, he had just made a mess of things and caused more trouble for the others. He would never admit it, but he still felt out of place at times when he was with the guardians, especially when they talked about times before he knew them. Perhaps Jack was the reason that Pitch had caused them so much trouble. He had refused Pitch's offer after all.

Jack's head was starting to hurt from all the pathetic thoughts running through his head. Pathetic, that's what he was. Jack shook his head and starred at the floor, trying not to look at Jamie in the face and see- the probable -rejection in his eyes. If he did, Jack didn't know if he'd be able to take it. In an instant, he found himself wrapped up in a warm embrace.

"I'm sorry that happened Jack. I can't believe Pitch could be so cruel... well, scratch that. He could be that cruel, I can't believe he'd be that cruel to _you._ You're such a good person and you make such good snowball fights, it's just... so sad..." Jack smiled and leaned into the embrace. It was strange, he was the spirit of winter, but he found the warm embrace extremely comforting. Jack mentally scorned himself, how could he ever doubt Jamie? He knew better than anyone how loyal and caring Jamie was.

"Thanks Jamie." Jack could feel Jamie nod, then pull away. Jamie began to run around the room, moving things and sorting through them shouting, "I'm going to be late!" He pulled on a blue t-shirt and combed his hair, slipping on a pair of tennis shoes along the way. Jamie threw a black back pack onto the couch against the wall, throwing papers and folders that were spread throughout the room into it. He closed it and slipped it on his back. He turned back to Jack, smiling apologetically.

"Sorry Jack. You're more than welcome to stay here, but I have to go to school. I'll be back around 5'ish. Try not to break anything, but you can do what you want. I'm not really sure if you eat or not, but there's snacks in the kitchen. Sorry, got to go, don't want to be late, bye!" Jack watched as Jamie left, shutting the door behind him. Jack listened intently until he heard Jamie's foot prints disappear, then pulled the box that he had been going through earlier, closer.

It turned out that the box had nothing interesting in it that Jack could use to tease Jamie with, in fact, non of the boxes in Jamie's house had anything interesting in them. Based on all the boxes of stuff floating around the house, it was clear that Jamie had just moved into the house. He was 19 afterall, finally had a job, his own house, and was off to college; that was probably where he was now. Jack would have to sneak into his school sometime and mess with him, perhaps throw a snowball or two at a professor. Jamie would _love_ that.

Jack was currently jumping on Jamie's bed, the covers and pillows thrown haphazardly across the room. Jack stopped when his side started to sting and burn in pain.

_'Perhaps I shouldn't be moving around so much. If Bunny or North saw me, I'd be dead...Speaking of which, they should be here soon to redress my wounds and such...' _Jack hopped off the bed and threw the blankets back on it, but didn't make it. They would scold him if he didn't eat something so he went into the kitchen, grumbling because he had to use the cane again. When Jack got better, he was going to throw the cursed thing into the grand fire place at the workshop. He sat the cane down and opened up the many cabinets looking for food.

Apparently, new houses don't have food in the cabinets.

"And Jamie said there was food in here, psh... I could just go and steal some food from somewhere, it's not like I don't save the world on a daily basis... but if Bunny, North, or Jamie came in and I wasn't here, I would never hear the end of it..." Jack gave up on trying to find food and sat cross-legged on the granite counters. Apparently, Jamie's job paid well because he had a _very_ nice house for a college student. It was only one floor, but it had two bedrooms, one grand bathroom, an open kitchen that connected to the dining room, and 2 lounge areas. Jack had took his time exploring and rummaging through the house and unlike Jack, Jamie hadn't done anything wrong once.

Jack found Jamie's work uniform in his closet. Apparently, Jamie was interning at the local hospital. He'd have to ask Jamie about it later. It was then that Jack heard something coming from the living room. He grabbed the cane off the ground and and limped into the livingroom. Jack wasn't surprised when he found out it was coming from the chimney. North came stumbling out, surprisingly with Bunny behind. Unfortunately, Bunny did not have a very graceful landing.

"Curses, I knew we should'a taken my tunnels. Lot safer." North helped Bunny up.

"Do not worry Bunny, you did fine." Jack couldn't help but laugh at the two's antics. North and Bunny turned to him and smiled.

"How ya feeling Frostbite?" Jack shrugged in response to Bunny's question.

"Alright I suppose. My side's hurting a bit though." North nodded and walked over to Jack. He motioned to the couch and Jack complied, sitting up straight and pulling off his hoodie. Bunny followed and pulled a pack off of his back and handed it to North. North rebandaged Jack's injuries, some of them still bleeding slightly. He felt around Jack's ribs, frowning when Jack hissed in pain.

"You're smaller cuts are healing nicely, but your stab wound is still pretty bad. It looks like you've torn it, what did you do today?"

"Well, I, uh... kinda... jumped on the bed..." Jack hadn't expected to be be hit on the head with a tube of medicine. North sighed.

"Jack, you're not going to get any better if you don't stay put," although, North was mentally smiling. The fact that Jack was doing what he _wasn't_ supposed to, meant that Jack was still himself. If Jack remembered, North didn't think that would be the case. North pulled out, what looked like a plastic corset from the bag, "now Jack, your ribs aren't healing as fast as I'd like so we'll have to put this on you until they get back on track..."

"How does that thing even work?" North smiled.

"I hoped you were going to ask that. So, you slip this on like you would a piece of armor. I know it doesn't look very comfortable, but this cast is very special!" Jack looked sceptical, "Truly, I made it myself. It's fashioned so that any guardian can wear it, meaning that once you put it on, it will fit to your body. It will be like a second skin to you, but it will keep your movements limited like any other cast. Although, it will look like a close-fitting shirt.

"Oh..."

"Don't worry Frostbite," Jack turned to Bunny, who placed a hand on his shoulder, "it's only for a little while." North smiled.

"Bunny is right, do not worry Jack. We must get back to work, but Jamie will be able to treat your wounds before you go to sleep. Bye bye Jack."

"Later mate." Bunny tapped the ground with his foot, despite the protest from, North. The two disappeared, leaving Jack by himself for the next 3 hours until Jamie returned. He picked up the plastic cast and limped to the bathroom. Jack slipped off his hoodie and shirt. He put on the plastic cast, looking at himself in the mirror as he did so. It took a moment, but the plastic began to move and bend with respect to his body. North was right, it did look just like an undershirt.

Jack bent over to grab his shirt and hoodie of the floor, but found out that his back wouldn't bend, just his waist. Jack shouted in aggravation when he lost his balance and fell. His side began to burn again, as well as his chest from the tumble. Jack had just realized that that was the first time he had fallen since he got to Jamie's house. He was very proud of himself. Although falling wasn't a good thing, only falling once showed that he was making progress. Progress was good.

Jack pulled himself up, making sure to grab his hoodie as he did so. He left his shirt on the floor. His hoodie would cover his chest and his shirt was too far away. Jack slipped on the hoodie with some difficulty and walked out of the bathroom. He decided to watch a movie until Jamie got back. It figured that most of the movies Jamie had were documentaries of mythical creatures like Bigfoot. The movie only had 30 minutes left when Jamie walked through the door.

"Jack? i brought some Chinese food. I don't know if you like it or not, so I just got you some sesame chicken and white rice." Jamie surprised to see Jack sitting on the couch, , watching one of his Bigfoot movies. If anything, Jamie was expecting to see Jack bouncing around the house, not watching a four hour documentary. Jack looked at him.

"Oh, that's fine. Want to finish watching this is with me? it's actually quite interesting. We can eat while it plays." Jamie blushed. None of his friends _ever _wanted to watch one of his documentaries, and the fact that it was Jack that wanted to watch it just made it all the more special. Jack was just... he was just the best person in the world to Jamie. He was funny, mischievous, sly, charming, strong brave... just everything goo in a person. The fact that Jamie was the first child to see him just made their relationship all the more sweet. Jamie pushed all of those thoughts aside and smiled.

"Sure! what do you think about the evidence they found in Richmond? Real or fake?" jack shrugged while watching Jamie pull off his back pack and set out the food on the coffee table. Jamie handed Jack his box of food and sat down next to him.

"Although you can tell the people were extremists towards Bigfoot, the evidence seems sound, even though that picture they had was obviously fake." Jamie nodded. He had thought the same thing too. It also turned out that Jack LOVED Chinese food. They ended up watching another documentary on aliens, but it wasn't nearly ad long. By the time they finished, it was already 7.

"Oh yea, that's right. I'm supposed to change your bandages before we go to sleep." Jack's mind froze. What happened before earlier wasn't enough to know what his reaction to actually _seeing_ the cuts would and the bruises would be. Jamie didn't seem to think any different of him but he could just be pretending. No, Jamie wasn't like that, but it still terrified Jack. 'What ifs' were flying through his head so fast by the time one began another ended. He numbly followed Jamie into the guest bedroom, time seemed to slow down. Jamie sat him on the bed and they looked at each other.

"Um Jack, I'm going to have to take off your hoodie now, okay?" Jack nodded. Jamie leaned down and grabbed the hem of Jack's hoodie and gently pulled it off the spirit. To say Jamie was surprised was an understatement. Bandages were wrapped around Jack's torso completely. Some of them were covered with fresh blood, while others just tinted slightly red. He looked at the white thing on his chest.

"Jack, what's this?" jack watched as Jamie traced the outlines of his chest through the white cast. He couldn't help but shiver in response to Jamie's cool fingers.

"It's a cast thingy for my ribs. Pitch broke 3 of them." Jamie frowned. He didn't like seeing Jack so broken, he didn't like it at all. Jamie also didn't like the fact that he would have to look at the injuries _behind_ the bandages.

"Alright Jack, I'm going to take off your bandages and redress them, okay?" Jack nodded. Jamie did as he said, slowly unwrapping the bandages and slipping off the cast. He tried to keep his shock inside as he worked. The bruises were a dark purple, and some of the scratches had begun to scab over. The large foot shaped bruise was still on his chest, and his stab wound was still bleeding slightly from Jack's fall. Jamie cleaned them and rewrapped them, placing the cast back on Jack. Before Jack could get up, he found himself wrapped up in another warm embrace.

"Jamie?" Jack was worried about the silence that responded. He froze when he felt tears splash on his bare shoulders.

"I'm sorry..."


	5. Chapter 5

**To be honest, I finished this chapter like 3 weeks ago, but it took me forever to type it up. I'm sorry that this chapter is shorter than the others, but the next one (which I'm already half way done with) is soing to be so very long.**

_**sassycat1998: **__You actually got me off my lazy butt to finish typing this._

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_..._

_"Sophie be careful!" Jamie's younger sister was drawing with chalk on their driveway._

_"I'll be fine Jamie, you worry way too much. Hey, we should play hopscotch like we did when we were little." Before Jamie could protest, Sophie began to draw the boxes and number them. Jamie sighed._

_"Is this really how you want to spend my last day at home together?" Sophie nodded._

_"Yes. It's perfect. Just like we're kids again." Jamie smiled and watched as Sophie finished the hopscotch drawing. Chalk dust covered her arms and legs as she stepped back to look at her work._

_"There, done." She raised her hand in the air and shouted, "I call going first!" Sophie pulled up the legs of her pants showing her tall, slender legs. She took on what looked like a battle stance that made Jamie laugh. After a moment of preperation, Sophie took off, jumping and twisting as easily as if she were walking. She finished the game, but lost her balance on the last jump. Sophie stumbled out into the road before she was able to balance herself. Jamie looked at her, worried._

_"Sophie, get out of the road. It's not safe!" Sophie stomped her foot and shouted back._

_"Well, it's not like I meant to, Dummy!" Sophie began to walk back towards the driveway, neither noticing the car until it was too late._

_"Sophie!" Time slowed down and the took looked at each other._

_"Jamie, I'm scared."_

Jamie shot up in his bed, sweat running all over his body and tears streaming down his face. He hadn't had a nightmare like that since Pitch was in power. Pitch... Jamie had to go check on Jack. Lightning flashed through his room as he stumbled out of bed. After rewrapping Jack's wounds they just talked. When it was time to sleep he helped Jack to the guest bedroom and helped him undress before going to his own room. The nightmare had felt so real, but Jamie tried not to think about it.

He walked into the cold hallway when a clash of thunder sounded. Jamie reached Jack's door. Without thinking, he threw open the door and peered inside. It was too dark to see anything, and it was... too silent. Lightning flashed again, illuminating the room from the window. Jamie felt his heart drop.

Pitch was there, leaning over Jack, who was laying in a pool of his own blood. Jamie wasn't even sure if it _was_ Jack laying under Pitch. The only thing he could clearly see through the blood, cuts, and bruises were Jack's eyes. They were so scarred and full of pain. Jamie could only imagine what had happened while he was sleeping.

Jack remembered. He remembered it all. The funny thing was, it was Pitch who helped him remember... through a nightmare. It was cruel, the fact that Jack had the bliss of ignorance of the pain and fear, but Pitch had made him remember. It wasn't just cruel, it was terrifying. Yes, he remembered all right.

Remembered the pain, the burn, the _fear_. Not only that, but Pitch also came for a visit. Because of his concussion, Jack had about how Pitch could find him anywhere. Perhaps that was his plan all along. Jack glanced at the plastic cast that layed shattered on the floor, along with his roen hoodie.

"You know Jack, it hurts my feelings that you had forgotten about our little engagement. I took the liberty of helping you remember, it wouldn't be any fun if you didn't. I'm sure your friend would like to see it too. Who knows, maybe I'll let him watch like I let the guardians last time..." Jack felt like crying, but he didn't. The last thing Jack wanted was for Jamie to see him so helpless, but he would stay strong, for Jamie. He glared at Pitch and spat blood on his face, making sure that Jamie could see his act of defiance. Jack wouldn't let Jamie worry, not like he did the guardians. Pitch growled at him and leaned closer.

"That's not how you treat guests Jack. Let me show you how I treat rude guests." Jamie could only watch as Pitch drove his fist in Jack's abdomen. Jack coughed up blood all over himself, although it didn't make a difference, causing blood to run down his chin. Jamie's legs wouldn't move, he was frozen where he was. He couldn't help Jack, even when he really needed him. It was then that he noticed black sand wrapped around his ankles. He hadn't even seen it move!

Jack laid against the bed, panting in raspy breaths. He was feeling dizzy, he knew it was from severe blood loss. If the guardians didn't save him soon, Jack feared there wouldn't been anything left to save. Thank Man in Moon that Pitch hadn't stabbed him again or broken any bones yet, otherwise, he'd be in big trouble.

After Jack had woken up from his disturbing nightmare/memory, he hadn't been very surprised to see Pitch over top of him and black sand wrapped around his arms and legs like before. That didn't mean he wasn't scared though.

_"Pitch, why are you here? Did you not have enough fun last time?" Pitch smiled darkly._

_"Oh believe me Jack, I had a wonderful time listening to you scream. In fact, so much that I've decided to play with you again. Doesn't that sound like fun, Jack? Or, would you prefer it if I called you... Frostbite?" Jack's eyes widened. _

_Pitch continued his tauntings, "What? I thought you liked the nickname Frostbite, Jack. Bunnymund calls you that all the time. Oh, but they way he looks at you Jack, you must be very special to him. I wonder why..." Jack made the most inhuman growl that Pitch had ever thought possible. The spirit was very angrey, and it was_ _**very **__apparent. Jack struggled against the nightmare sand that bound him, grunting and shaking his head. His attempts were fruitile since he just ended up more tiried and out of breath._

_"Leave Bunny out of this!" Pitch's face lit up at Jack's outburst._

_"Oh, did I hit a nerve, __**Frostbite**__? Maybe I should leave a gift for Bunny? I think a damaged and torn Jack would be perfect, don't you? I brought us some new things to try, so let's get started." PItch had brought his sand dagger, which was to be expected. He also brought lightning bolts that he had stolen from Lady storm, which was probably why there was a thunderous storm outside. He also brought a secondary dagger that was made of blood stone that Pitch had found while trapped underground for 10 years. _

_Jack found out the hard way that the lightning bolt shocked him, althgouh it was a fraction of the power of an actual one. The blood dagger caused the blood inside of him to burn. Pitch had explained how all of them worked before hand, but Jack was in too much pain to really pay attention to him. _

Jamie had arrived after Pitch had already tortured and beaten Jack. The guardian of fun was brought out of his thoughts by another punch to his midsection. He still hadn't screamed once. He couldn't do it with Jamie watching, and also since Pitch had mentioned Bunny. Bunny... What _did_ Jack think about Bunny?

Now that Jack thought about it, he realized that he didn't really think about it. Jack and Bunny were always bickering and fighting, but they were very close. They were almost like brothers. Did Bunny think of Jack as something more? Did Jack think of Bunny as something more? He cherised all of the guardians, they were his family. However, there was something special between the two. Had the other guardians noticed? No, the guardians were too naive to think something like that. He had to let them -no, he had to let Bunny know how he felt.

"Pitch, you can say what you want about the guardians, but you're wasting your breath. I know the guardians will be there for me no matter what and I don't blame them or Jamie for anything that's happened to me. In fact, I'm thankful for all that they've done for me. Also, about what you said earlier about me being special to Bunny; you may be right, or you may not, but Bunny is someone special to me. More than just a friend or a brother. He's important to me, and you will never be able to break that!" Pitch had had enough. He pulled out the dagger of nightmare sand that he had yet to use and drove it into Jack's abdomen. Jack froze. He didn't scream like last time, but he questioned if the holding back was really worth it.

It turned out that being stabbed from the front hurt much more than being stabbed in the side. Pitch didn't take the dagger out, he left it, the handle sticking out of Jakc's body. Pitch leaned back, still very upset with Jack. How dare he not break under him! Jack and the guardians were supposed to dread being alive, to suffer! Pitch growled and turned to Jamie.

"Sorry to cut things short, but Jack is going to break, and I am going to make sure of it!" Pitch reached over the side of the bed and picked up Jack's staff which had been returned earlier that night. He gripped it tightly and with a grunt, he snapped the branch in half. Jack cried out and slowly felt tears running down his face. Pitch wavedhis hands, causing the sand holding Jack hostage to disappear. The young spirit curled in on himself. Pitch smiled and looked back at Jamie.

"I'll be taking my leave, but it seems that Jack could still take a push in the right direction." Pitch gathered Jack in his arms bridal style, carefully making sure that his dagger wouldn't go any deeper into Jack than it already was. It wouldn't do any good if Jack died. He slipped into the dark, leaving Jamie by himself, and taking Jack with him.

_**Please review!**_


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